It’s Tricky wins Coaching Club American Oaks

SARATOGA SPRINGS — It’s Tricky won a prolonged stretch drive with Plum Pretty and won the Grade I, $250,000 Coaching Club American Oaks at Saratoga Race Course on a steamy Saturday afternoon.

It was the first Grade I of the season at the Spa.

Sent off at 4-1 in the five-horse field, It’s Tricky, ridden by Eddie Castro, hooked up with Plum Pretty, the 9-5 favorite, in the stretch. The two horses battled on even terms to the wire before It’s Tricky nudged ahead and won the race by three quarters of a length.

It’s Tricky, trained by Kiaran McLaughlin, by $10.60, $4.40 and $3.40. Plum Pretty, the winner of the Kentucky Oaks and trained by Hall of Famer Bob Baffert and ridden by Martin Garcia, paid $3.40 and $2.50. Royal Delta finished third and returned $2.50. The final time in the 1 1/8 mile race was 1:49.

McLauglin said after the race that the next start for the 3-year-old filly, owned by Godolphin Stable, could be the Alabama Stakes here on Aug. 20

3 Responses

I played It’s Tricky in her last two races because I knew that her only bad race was the result of her being “in season”, plus I knew that the last two favorites she beat weren’t able to get the distance. I got $19 and $10 this time for the win. I nailed both races with complete confidence knowing the reason for that one bad race. I go to WinBy5.com and get the information there. They give all sorts of “tid bits” of information there and I have made alot of good scores with that info.

The Coaching Club American Oaks is a prime example of the “wimpification” of thoroughbred racing in the USA today. This classic race was run at a mile-and-a-half at Belmont, and some of the great fillies of their days won at a mile-and-a-half. By reducing the race to a mile-and-a-quarter, and now a mile-and-an-eighth, the race has lost its luster. The only way I could watch this race would be to: 1) move it back to Belmont and race it at a mile-and-a-half; 2) make them start the race on the middle of the far turn at Saratoga, or; 3) have them run 3 laps across the street. The Jockey Club Gold Cup is another example since that race used to be run at 2 miles, and is now a mile-and-a-quarter after having been a mile-and-a-half for a few years. I’d say that since the advent of the Breeders’ Cup, racing in the USA has been wimpified so much that it isn’t relevant, sans for the Triple Crown.

The NY Daily news reported that the first televised RACING AT SARATOGA which featured the CCAO and It’s Tricky drew 1.1M viewers which topped 3 of the last 5 Breeders Cups on television..not too shabby!!!!